Your guide to the midterm elections

Now’s the time to make your voice heard

by
Rachel Fey

published
2018-09-26T15:30:00Z

The midterm election is right around the corner—Tuesday, November 6th to be exact. Meh, you say? Well, elections are decided by those who show up! So if you want to have your say, we’ve got your back and a lot of resources to help you exercise your rights.

What’s at stake?

A lot when it comes to access to birth control. Find out where your candidates stand on the issues. For example:

Do they support public funding for birth control so women with lower incomes have access to the full range of methods?

Do they support the requirement that insurance companies cover the full range of birth control methods without co-pays (which the Affordable Care Act currently requires)?

Speaking of the Affordable Care Act, are they against getting rid of or weakening the law, such as by ending the requirement to cover people who have preexisting conditions?

Where do your candidates stand?

These are just a few questions you may want to ask of your candidates to learn how supportive they are of policies that ensure everyone has the power to decide if, when, and under what circumstances to get pregnant and have a child.

So learn about the candidates that will be on your ballot and where they stand on the issues. You can find out what U.S. House district you’re in here and then look up the candidates running for that seat and check out their campaign websites here. To see if there’s a Senate race in your state and who’s running go here, and for governor’s races here.

Will you be able to vote when the day comes?

Find out how to vote if you’re going to be away from home on November 6. If you are already registered to vote, you can apply for an absentee ballot here. Note, each state has their own requirements on what circumstances qualify someone to vote absentee.

Make a plan to vote. If you’re planning to vote on election day, think about your schedule on November 6th. Will you vote in the morning? After class? In the evening? Do you need a ride to the polls? Make sure you know when and how you’ll get to your polling location so you can make your voice heard!

What if you’re turned away or have trouble voting when you get to the polls?

We trust that sexy brain of yours to post with good intentions. And we promise to respect your perspective, thoughts, insight, advice, humor, cheeky anecdotes, and tips. We’ll even indulge a healthy rant or two. But we must ask that you cite your source if you want to challenge any scientific or technical information on Bedsider. And please note: We will not tolerate abusive comments, racism, personal attacks, or bullying. That’s why we take our time to read every comment before it is posted. (That’s also why there’s some lag time before your comment shows up.) We greatly appreciate your presence here and welcome your participation 24/7/365. Just remember to be respectful and you’ll be good to go.

Oh! One more thing: We do our best to answer questions in a timely manner, but we can’t guarantee an immediate reply. (And we don’t answer questions that are already answered in the article you’re commenting on.) If you ask a question and need a response right now, we partner with San Francisco Sex Information (SFSI) to give you free, accurate, confidential info on sex and reproductive health. Their phone number is 415-989-SFSI (7374) and here are their hours. And if you have an urgent medical question, please contact your doctor or a local health center. We’re here to help you stay informed, but only a medical professional can advise you on personal health concerns.